The Auditor General of Canada is an officer of the
Parliament of Canada
The Parliament of Canada (french: Parlement du Canada) is the federal legislature of Canada, seated at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, and is composed of three parts: the King, the Senate, and the House of Commons. By constitutional convention, the ...
to aid accountability and oversight by conducting independent financial audits of federal government operations. These audits provide members of parliament with objective evidence to help them examine the government's activities and hold it to account.
Karen Hogan was appointed Auditor General of Canada in June 2020. She replaced interim Auditor General of Canada Sylvain Ricard.
Office
Auditors general are appointed by the
governor general
Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...
in council (
cabinet
Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to:
Furniture
* Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers
* Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets
* Filing ...
) on advice of the House of Commons and Senate for a non-renewable term of ten years. An auditor general may only be removed for cause by the governor in council with the approval of both the House of Commons and
Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
.
The auditor general's responsibilities include:
* auditing operations of the federal and territorial governments
* providing Parliament and the legislative assemblies with independent information, assurance, and advice regarding the stewardship of public funds
On November 4, 2011, the prime minister appointed Michael Ferguson, former Auditor General of the province of
New Brunswick
New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...
, as Auditor General of Canada, effective November 28, 2011. Sylvain Ricard, having been previously the deputy auditor general, was appointed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on March 29, 2019, to serve until a permanent replacement was selected.
The Office of the Auditor General of Canada was named one of "
Canada's Top 100 Employers
Canada's Top 100 Employers is an annual editorial competition that recognizes the best places in Canada to work. First held in 1999, the project aims to single out the employers that lead their industries in offering exceptional working conditions ...
" by Mediacorp Canada Inc. five years in a row (2008-2012), and was featured in ''
Maclean's
''Maclean's'', founded in 1905, is a Canadian news magazine reporting on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, and current events. Its founder, publisher John Bayne Maclean, established the magazine to provide a uniquely Canadian perspe ...
'' newsmagazine.
The commissioner of the environment and sustainable development, was created by Parliament in 1995 as an aide to the AGC, and has offices within the precinct of the AGC. The commissioner is empowered under the 1995 amendments to the Auditor-General Act to receive "petitions on environmental and sustainable development matters and
orequire ministers to respond to them".
[Backgrounder on powers of the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development](_blank)
/ref> The petition process requires the ministry to respond in 120 days, although the process may be delayed by litigation.
History
The role of auditor general was introduced in 1878 and prior to the creation it was the head of the audit board (1867-1878).
In 1971, the auditor general's office hosted VII INCOSAI, the seventh triennial convention of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions
The International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) is an intergovernmental organization whose members are supreme audit institutions. Nearly every supreme audit institution in the world is a member of INTOSAI. Depending on t ...
.
List of auditors general of Canada
See also
* Parliament of Canada
The Parliament of Canada (french: Parlement du Canada) is the federal legislature of Canada, seated at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, and is composed of three parts: the King, the Senate, and the House of Commons. By constitutional convention, the ...
* Auditor General of British Columbia
The Auditor General of British Columbia is an independent Officer of the Legislature of British Columbia, responsible for conducting audits of the government reporting entity (GRE) which consists of ministries, Crown corporations, and other go ...
References
External links
Office of the Auditor General of Canada
Financial Administration Act of Canada
{{authority control
1878 establishments in Canada
Government agencies established in 1878
Officers of the Parliament of Canada
Government of Canada
Federal departments and agencies of Canada
Office of the Auditor General